PDP, APC Engage In Verbal War Over Attack On Oyetola

By Ayobami Agboola, Osogbo

Following the attack on Governor Gboyega Oyetola’s convoy by suspected hoodlums while addressing #EndSARS protester in Osogbo, last Saturday, the state chapter of the All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party have engaged in war of words.

Oyetola who had earlier walked with the protesting youths from Oke Fia- Alekuwodo to the popular Olaiya junction, the convergence point of #EndSARS protesters was attacked alongside his deputy, Mr Benedict Alabi and other members of Executive while he was trying to address them.

But while reacting in a statewide broadcast on Sunday morning, Oyetola explained that his attackers were not the genuine protesters who were protesting under the aegis of #EndSARS. Governor Oyetola alleged that those who swooped on him on Saturday made attempts to assassinate him and some of political aides.

However the opposition party in the state the peoples Democratic Party, PDP , in a statement signed by its acting Chairman , Sunday Bisi , had criticized Oyetola saying “that the governor as the chief security officer of the state, lacked the nerve or security intelligence support to name those behind the purported attack on his life more than almost 48hours after the incident shows the depth of evil and small-mindedness in open thuggery Mr Oyetola and his henchmen in APC have inflicted on this noble State”.

The acting PDP Chairman said “it is pertinent to remind Oyetola of a similar attack carried out by thugs belonging to other faction of his party during the 2020 New year Eve celebration at Freedom Park Osogbo, where his security guards and thugs loyal to him had to expend several rounds of live bullets to get him spirited out of the scene.

“The state will also not forget in a hurry, how APC flooded Osun State with arrays of thugs when it became apparent that going to lose the 2018 governorship election in the Osun.

“The conducts of these thugs after the election till date is a testament to the fact that Oyetola is a beneficiary of the 2018 carnage visited on the state and has failed woefully to disarm the armed thugs in his party which they are now turning against him,” Bisi stated.

He urged Oyetola to apologise to the parents who lost their children. The PDP also blamed the violence on a supremacy battle between groups of hoodlums called “ State Boys ” who were nurtured by the APC .

While commiserating with the governor over the assault on him, the PDP said, “ We call on the state governor to set all necessary machineries in motion to track down the ‘State Boys’ who instigated the assault on his person that degenerated into the killing of the two Nigerians in Osogbo on Saturday .

“ We also demand the immediate arrest and prosecution of the trigger- happy guards involved in the killing of the innocent youths.”

In response , the state Director of Publicity, Research and Strategy of the APC , Kunle Oyatomi, in a separate statement described claims by the PDP as “ illogical, empty and far from the reality . ”

Oyatomi said , “ It ’ s stupid to sell a dummy, and expecting that the good people of Osun will believe your cock and bull story that Oyetola sponsored hoodlums to attack himself.

Osun PDP claimed that “political thugs armed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) were the attackers of governor Oyetola’s convoy in the Saturday’s attack in Osogbo”, noting that it is absolutely unfortunate for the PDP to have that irrational thinking.

The APC directed the acting chairman of PDP to immediately visit the Police Command in the state and tell the security officers all he knew about what transpired on Saturday’s attack.

It’s stupid to sell a dummy, and expecting that the good people of Osun will believe your cock and bull story that Oyetola sponsored hoodlums to attack himself. Please tell that to the marines. The Governor is a peace-loving man. He walked with the protesters until the agents of darkness infiltrated the group and wreak havoc. That’s hard sell.

APC said further that, it is even better for PDP in Osun to keep mute than fabricating unfounded lies purposely to misinform the publics, adding that the opposition’s claim not only lack merit but confused and absurd.

Oyatomi explained that, it is absolutely illogical for the opposition to even think of such, and it is not even possible for a reasonable person to instigate or invite his or her friends to attack him or her to the point of assassination attempt on their sponsors, adding that it is only a confused mind or group that will have that dastardly thought.

“It is pertinent to remind the public that Osun APC had earlier on Saturday, raised alarm that sponsored political thugs and hoodlums have hijacked the peaceful protest organised by the main protesters” the party said.

Without mincing words, security agencies have been called to investigate the attack so that those sponsored hoodlums and their sponsors will be brought to justice to serve as a deterrent.